My 3 year journey!

The year 2008 will be coming to a close in a few hours time. It's been almost 3 months since I have graduated and obtained my wings. Being part phlegmatic that I am, I've only finally mustered sufficient drive to put in this entry to close up this chapter of my life and start a new one.

Looking back at the time when I first submitted my application to the airforce, it's been 3+ years. So many things have happened since. I remember I was still an undergraduate at NUS, awaiting for my application to go through, wondering whether it would ever be in God's will for me to become a fighter pilot.

The journey through the selection, basic flying and the fighter training phase were challenging and trying periods for my love ones and I. I dare say that, these 3 years have been a very humbling and yet wonderful experience. Humbling, because never in my life thus far, have my weaknesses been so clearly revealed to me. Wonderful because through my weaknesses, the Lord has shown to me how Sovereign and great He is. The Lord has taught me total dependence and complete trust in Him through the following 3 particular phases, which I would like to share.

1) Medical

To keep it brief, I've always had sinus problems since young - stuffy nose in the morning and such. And I was afraid that I would not pass the aviation medical check for that reason. I prayed and God answered mightily. He not only cleared me through my medical check ups, but ever since, my sinus problem has never given me any problems during my flight training! How great a God is He!

2) Selection for fighters

10 months of basic flight training in Australia was to be the stage for fighter selection. This was a period where I truly learnt to humble myself and leave it all in God's sovereign hands. Only the best few trainees from this training would be selected to proceed on for fighter training. I prayed and pleaded to God daily and God answered by showing His power and sovereignty by granting me a slot in fighter training against all statistical odds! Can you imagine how elated and happy I was when I received that news! It was not by my hard work, diligence and ability that earned me my place in fighter training, but it was by God's grace and mighty hands that have done so! Praise the Lord for His goodness and faithfulness!

3) Completing fighter training

My one year in France have been the most trying time. This phase in particular was really an enligtening and humbling one as well. Never before have my weaknesses been so clearly revealed to me than this phase. There have been many times that I have envied my course mates because of their performance and ability. I've never ceased to pray and hope that the Lord would grant me better performance and ability. But somehow the Lord has sufficiently provided that which is sufficient, nothing more and nothing less. In doing so the Lord has taught me total dependence on Him as He leads, guides and provides sufficiently daily and each step of the way. God has strenghtened my faith and increase my dependence on Him. I thank God for His moulding, and His mercies and grace in leading and guiding me through this course every single step of the way.

I recount the many times even up till the last few flights of the course, where I didn't even dare dream that I would be able to graduate as a fighter pilot, I truly praise and thank the Lord for fulfilling that dream. Words are not enough to express the gratitude and praise that I have for the Lord God almighty! Praise the Lord from whom all blessings flow!!

What Next?

The past 3 years were not easy but thanks be to God for His grace and mercies! As I begin my journey as a fighter pilot to defend my nation, I know the road ahead and journey that awaits me would be fraud with numerous and possibly overwhelming obstacles, difficulties and uncertainties. But one thing I am sure of, is that the Lord is sovereign, mightier and more powerful than whatever I would face! My trust and faith would be in God and God alone!

"As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all those that trust in him." -Psa 18:30

"The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower." -Psa 18:2

"It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes." -Psa 118: 8-9

"For the LORD your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords, a great God, a mighty, and a terrible(to be revered and feared), which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward" -Deu 10:17

p.s.

It is my ernest prayer that this testimony would be an encouragement to anyone reading it.

For those with like precious faith, be encouraged that you can commit and trust the Lord in anything, from the smallest of things to the biggest of problems. The Lord is able, mighty and sovereign!

For those of you who are non-Christians, I pray that this account of the Lord's goodness toward me would get you thinking about the only true and living God that I worship, the Lord Jesus Christ. And by God's grace, one day, you too would come to accept and believe in this true and living God!

The Lord my comforter and strength

Blogging is definitely not my second nature, which explains for the long lapses between entries, but the Lord has been so good to me that I cannot keep quiet.

It's been 10 months since I started my course here in France. I'm about 70-80% through with the course. The journey here is definetely harder and more challenging than Australia and I really never dare imagine that I would be able to come this far, much less graduate. There have been many ups and downs and there were times that I really thought that I wouldn't pull through those downs. And there are many times that I really was down spirited and discouraged. Being away from home and loved ones, I felt alone. The only source of comfort, relief and assurance I could find was from the Bible and prayer, pouring out my heart and soul to the Lord who hears.

The Lord was the one who comforted me and uplifted my spirits. He was the one who raised me up from my falls and set me on my feet. He gave me the extra strength and grace to scale those impossible mountains. He would never let me be tried more than what I could take. The Lord indeed is true and faithful and He is sovereign and able to keep! He is the King of kings and Lord of lords, the only true and living GOD! Praise His Wonderful name.

Let this entry be an encouragement and a reminder to all that, the only source of true comfort, assurance and joy is found in the Lord Jesus Christ, simply because He hears, Is Able and answers.

As you can see from the counter at the top of the blog, I'm near to the end of the course. God willing, I will graduate in about a month's time. Let it be known to all who reads this, that when I do graduate, it is solely by the grace, mercies and sovereign hand of God and not my own hard work or abilities. So let all praise and glory be unto the LORD MOST HIGH!

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof." -Psa 16:1-3

"The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower." -Psa 18:2

"Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand." -Psa 37:24

God even in the computer age

Its been a very long time since I've put in an entry but God has been so good that it would not be right to just keep quiet about His goodness. However this would be a short entry tho.

My laptop was hit by some virus and spyware, which had these irritating popups every few minutes. It was truly annoying! At that point in time, my mind really went blank. I didn't know what I could do besides re formatting my com. However, I've never reformatted a computer before and I did not have any of the software installation discs with me here in France! I was really lost in terms of what to do. My mind went into a swirl, thinking of how I would survive without a properly working computer. I needed it for briefs and projects! It was not just a comfort item, it was a need. While waiting for my recovery disc to be created (it took about an hour and a half), I pleaded with God that I really really needed the computer to be back in its working condition.

And guess what, after a system restore and a restart, the computer went back to normal! And my anti-virus which was not able to contain the virus earlier on, was able to do it after the system restore! I'm not a person who is very savvy with computers and I really do not know the technical details of what happened, but I do know one thing, and that is, God is a God even in this computer age! He is sovereign and nothing is too hard for HIM! Praise His glorious name!

"Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:" -Jer 32:17

First Solo!

Meant to put this entry 2 weeks ago. Anyway here it is.

I went for my first solo on the A4SU Super Skyhawk about 2 weeks ago. It's a milestone for me in my training to be a pilot. Honestly, I really didn't dare imagine of going for my first solo so smoothly! I expected it to be fraud with more difficulties and much harder than what I've gone through. I'm not saying that it was easy but it was smoother than what I expected.

Its definitetly by the grace and mighty arm of the Lord alone, who has brought and guided me through to my first solo! All praise and glory be to Him. It is not by my own strength but His alone that I've come this far. The days ahead would only get tougher and more challenging. I do not know what the future holds but my trust and confidence is in the Lord who is my Rock and Fortress,unwaivering and unchanging.

"The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower." -Psa 18:2

All Glory to God Almighty!

My Soverign Loving Lord!

It feels as if it was just last week that I bid farewell to my family, loved one, and friends but in actual fact, it was more than a month ago. How time flies.

Before I left for France, I did not really search for a church in France and wasn't really concerned about which church I would be attending, partly because I was loaded and armed with a fair bit of Bible study material and I thought it would suffice. Even when I got here, I did not really search for a church until one of the guys here told me that there was an English service near base. I did a search on the internet and did find some church with an English service. I noted the address but didn't quite get round to finding out where the place was. But the marvellous thing is that God wasn't just about to let me go on procrastinating. Instead, He intervened by moving our OC to send an email to us inviting us to attend an English service that he was attending! How coincidental was that? I can assure you, it wasn't mere coincidence, but it is the providence and Sovereignty of God displayed!

I pray and hope that this sharing would encourage and remind you that the Only True and Living God is a Sovereign God, the Lord most High, who is in absolute control regardless of the circumstance, situation, spiritual or emotional state you might be in. Not only is He a Sovereign Lord who is above all, He is also a loving God who understands, cares for us and wants to be involved in every aspect of our life. This experience of how God led me to a church here is testimony of it.

The Glory of God

"The LORD hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad."

-Psa 126:3

"Declare his glory among the heathen; his marvelous works among all nations." -1Ch 16:24

The Lord has indeed done great things for me; whereof I am glad. And this entry, just like the rest is to delcare His glory and marvelous works to everyone.

He has graciously seen me through the course and I've finally officially completed my course here as of today. My journey here has not been an easy one. There were many ups and downs but through it all, the God of heaven and earth has seen me through it all. He has upheld me during my lows and given me that quiet, confident assurance that He is sovereign and in abosolute control regardless the situation. When I humble myself and plead with the Lord in times of anxiety, God warms my heart and fills my inner being with a peace that cannot be explained and passeth all understanding. The Lord is indeed the only true and living God who is worthy and greatly to be praised and worshipped.

I joined the airforce with the hope of being a fighter pilot but was not sure what what the will of God is for me. I did pray asking God to deny me the chance to even start a career in the airforce if it is His will not for me to be a fighter pilot in fear that I would face that dreaded day of disappointment when i do not become a fighter pilot. But at the same time, there was a small part of me who did not mind being a pilot of other platform if it was really God's will not for me to be a fighter pilot. Daily, I earnestly prayed and committed this matter unto God and it was to be that as the days went by, and as God guided me through each phase, from the medical check ups, to my selection phase and up to my current course here, the desire to be a fighter pilot grew. I believe that even as I daily commit this matter unto God and acknowledge Him in my ways, He has directed my paths and even placed in me this growing desire to be a fighter pilot.

People did tell me that because of my age, it is not in my favour to be in the fighters. Learning rate for me would be slower than the younger ones and the many possible considerations that the organisation has in selecting and sending people for fighter training is not in my favour. And besides, I did not have perfect eyesight and have slight sinus problems. But the Lord has mightily and graciously overcame the odds for me. He has granted me extra discipline and strength, which I've never had in my many years of academics, to study and prepare for sorties. He has sustained and kept me in good health during my course of stay here. I have not fallen ill once so far and it is solely by the sustainance and mercies of God. He has granted me clear, unblocked nose to fly daily, grace to fly reasonbly well and learn fairly fast. How Marvellous God is!

And as if all that is mentioned is not enough to show that it is the mighty arm of God that has brought me through thus far, my course starts diminishing in number. From past statistics, generally the top 1/3 will usually be selected and sent to fighters. As mentioned in the previous post, it would statistically not be in my favour if the number in my course were to reduce. It would only mean that there would be lesser fighter slots. As the streaming day for my course drew nearer, there were rumours going around that for our course of 8, there would only probably be 2-3 fighter slots at most. I am ashamed to say but my heart sank and there were moments when I did waiver in faith and wonder whether it is God's will for me to actually go to the fighters. But these moments did not last long for I was quickly snapped back into the correct perspective of how small these matters are compared to who God is. I have never pleaded to the Lord so earnestly before in my life.

And to the glory of God, I am selected for fighter training. And not only that but am also selected to be a reserve for an overseas fighter course. I did pray and ask God that if it His will not for me to go for this overseas course, that he would not put me in the reserve. But now that I have been selected to be in the reserve, I have this feeling and confidence that God has a plan for me. Whatever it is, the Lord's will be done!

The Lord has indeed been faithful and gracious to my family and me and there are so many more things that I can thank and praise Him for but I shall leave that for another time or face to face sharing.

All Glory to the Lord of Hosts!

Why?

Why do I want so much to be a fighter pilot? Ask me when I get back =)

Why I need to be a fighter pilot?

1. That the faith of my friends and family will be strengthened.

I’m not sure if its us Asians or us, the more conservative Christians who have pessimism in our blood but I can’t help but notice that when one encourages another, I often hear the phrase “Even if the Lord doesn’t bring to pass what you’ve praying for, He has a purpose and His ways are not our ways.” being spoken or something along that line. I’m not saying that it is wrong or false. It is definitely true and it definitely puts the situation in perspective and balance, and prepares the person to accept the will of God, which in this case would be the undesired outcome. Even I’m guilty of this kind of encouragement. I’m not saying that we omit it totally but let’s not be too hasty to give this kind of encouragement.

Personally, having received this kind of encouragement often, instead of being encouraged, I am oft times discouraged. It is no doubt that this is a good reminder that whatever comes, I must accept it for it is the perfect will of God. However, I’m discouraged because I get the sentiment and feel that the person does not dare to commit to saying or believing that God is able and will bring it to pass. It just gives me the feeling that in our mind’s eye, the God that we believe in is rather less able and powerful than the powerful, almighty God who divided the red sea, brought down fire from heaven and created the heavens and the earth whom we learn and read about in the Bible. Or maybe in our mind’s eye, the God we believe in is less willing to do great and mighty works these days as compared to the days of old. It doesn’t help especially when the person being encouraged is already in a difficult situation. It’s sort of as good as saying to him “give it up lah.” I am not accusing or being judgmental but rather, I’m speaking for myself. I am guilty of this. That’s the reason that comes up when I really search deep down why I give those “kinds” of encouragement sometimes. It’s very often that we tend to belittle God in difficult circumstances and so quickly waiver in our faith in God.

Before we give such an encouragement, let us take that opportunity to reflect and search ourselves for the real reason why we are giving it. Is it because of the reason, which is written in the previous paragraph or is it because we want to truly remind, bring perspective and balance to the circumstance and encourage that brethren that regardless, God is sovereign. I pray that our reason would be the latter.

I would like to urge everyone not to be so quick in giving this “kind” of encouragement but rather give more “positive” encouragements first. An e.g. would be “lean not unto thy understanding but in all thy ways commit it unto the Lord and He will grant you the desires of your heart.” And encouragements must definitely be according to the word of God.

I hope and pray that through this event, the faith of my family and friends would be strenghtened and that we'll all be reminded that the God we believe in is the same almighty God of Moses and Elijah; the same God who brought the universe into existence.

“Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” - Jer 33:3

2. That my friend(s) might not mock the faith that I have in the God of this universe and really see the glory of the Lord through this.

I’ve often told my friend(s) that if the Lord wills, regardless of the situation, I will go to the fighters and it’s not that my friend has outwardly mocked that faith that I have but with my interactions with him, I get the feeling that he would, if I do not go to the fighters.

That my friends might see how the Lord has overcame for me the many odds and uncertainties that were in my path simply because of the simple faith I have in the true and living God. So that my friends would see how real the God I believe in is.

“That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.” - Psa 83:18

3. That I might declare to the people around me the wondrous works, abundant grace, mighty sovereign hands of God. In essence, that the glory of God may be shown and declared.

As mentioned in my blog sometime ago, the odds and uncertainties that are in my way are many. Just to mention two, my age and eyesight is not in my favour for fighters.

And even as I train here, some more odds and uncertainties have surfaced. Just to mention a few, I’m not one of those who are born, natural flyers. I did have a fair share of tough and rough patch in my training. But the grace and strength of God has been sufficient and has brought me thus far.

And even as my course has reduced from 18 to a small number of 9, I would expect the slots for fighters to reduce. If I was 4th in the course of 18 or even 16, statistically speaking, my chances of qualifying for fighters is higher than when I’m 4th in a course of 9. If God intended for me to go to fighters, the latter would be a better way. Why do I say that? It is because it would more clearly and convincingly show that it is God’s sovereign mighty hand alone that has guided me and brought me to the fighters. If it was the former i.e. 4th in a course of 16, people can attribute it to my hard work and making it there by my own effort. But if it was the latter, i.e. 4th in a course of 9, statistically speaking, it is already to my disadvantage, and so it would convincingly show that God alone is the one who got me to the fighters by His mighty hands. God’s name would be glorified.

“Declare his glory among the heathen; his marvelous works among all nations.” - 1Ch 16:24

4. That my faith may be strengthened.

“The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety [deliverance, help, safety, salvation, victory] is of the LORD.” - Pro 21:31

“For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me. But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us.” - Psa 44:6 - 7

... And yet not my will but Yours be done.